Ashtray



United States Patent 11113,536,078

[72] Inventor Alfredo Papi 1,725,196 8/1929 Johnson 131/235 Vi Garibaldi 585m Fiol'emmo, 2,106,059 1/1938 Norton 131/235 Florence, Italy 2,737,956 3/1956 Casper 131/235 [21] Appl. No. 760,793 3,173,641 3/1965 Dorrance 131/235X [22] Filed Sept. 19, 1968 3,411,516 11/1968 McWilliams 131/235 Pmmy 1967 529,253 8/1956 Canada 131/235 4823A, 183,282 6/1936 Switzerland 131/235 Primary Examiner-Joseph S. Reich Attorney-Michael S. Striker [54] ASHTRAY 5 Claims, 2 Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S.Cl 131/235 ABSTRACT: An ashtray including an ash receptacle having 19/14 its bottom wall provided with a central raised portion having [50] Field of Search 131/235, an orifice in which an insert is secured A permanent magnet i 237 embedded in this insert and a snuffing member having one or more open-ended extinguishing tubes and a magnetizable [56] References cued member at its bottom end which is adapted to abut the upper UNKTED STATES PATENTS free face of the permanent magnet so as to hold the smiling 83,926 4/ 1931 Seidle 1 3 1/235-X member by magnetic attraction to the ash receptacle.

Patented Oct. 27, 1970 3,536,078

11 enter 4 :90 PARC Ola/00H f/h'l! Attorney ASHTRAY This invention relates to an improved ash tray and in particular to an ashtray of the kind comprising a snufiing member.

It is known to extinguish the lighted end of a cigarette by serting it into a tube to deprive the burning end of the oxygen necessary to support combustion and throughout this specification such a tube, or a cluster of such tubes, will be referred to as a snuffing member".

Ashtrays have been proposed which comprise an ash receptacle and a snuffing member removably mounted in the ash receptacle.

In one embodiment of ashtray, the snufling member is integral with a pillar which is located in the ash receptacle by being placed over an upstanding peg in the ash receptacle.

It is essential that the snuffing member be firmly held within the ash receptacle otherwise there is a danger of the smiling member tipping over in use and such a tipping could give rise to a fire hazard. Thus it is important that the snuffing member be securely located within the ash receptacle but at the same time readily removable, since it is periodically necessary to remove the extinguished ends of cigarettes contained in the tube or tubes, and this can be most easily accomplished by removing the snuffing member from the ash receptacle. In practice, the ash receptacle normally contains matches, ash and cigarette ends all of which obstruct or otherwise interfere with the location of a snuffing member in the base of the ash receptacle.

This invention relates to an improved form of ashtray in which the snuffing member is removably mounted on a stem raised above the bottom of the ash receptacle.

Preferably a magnet is located on the stem or in the snuffing member and a cooperating piece of magnetic material is placed in the snufl'rng member or on the stern respectively. In this way the snuffing member is held to the stem by magnetic attraction.

The accompanying drawing shows, by way of example, one embodiment of ashtray in accordance with the invention, FIG. 1 being a central sectional view of an ashtray and FIG. 2 a plan from above.

The ashtray shown in the drawing comprises an ash receptacle 1 having a central stem 2 containing a magnet 3. Mounted on the stem 2 is a snuffing member 4 having three tubes 5, into which cigarette ends can be placed, and having a member 6 of nonmagnetised magnetic material mounted therein with the lower surface of the member flush with the bottom of the snuffing member. The permanently magnitised magnet 3 holds the snuffing member 4 securely on the stem 2 (by virtue of its attraction to the member 6), even when the stem is liberally covered with ash.

When the tubes 5 are full, the snuffing member can be emptied merely by lifting it from the stem 2 and allowing the cigarette ends contained in the tubes 5 to drop into the ash receptacle 1. Since the magnet 3 is raised above the bottom of the ash receptacle it is not obstructed by the contents of the ash receptacle and the snuffing member can easily be placed back on the stem.

in a preferred embodiment of ashtray, the ash receptacle 1 and the snufiing member 2 are made of a ceramic material the magnet 3 being embedded in a circular plate 7 secured in an orifice in the ash receptacle 1.

It will be appreciated that the permanent magnet can be located in the snufling member 4 rather than on the stem 2 and that the snufi'mg member can embody more or less than three tubes. It will also be appreciated that other than magnetic means can be employed to hold the snuffing member in place.

I claim:

1. An ashtray comprising an ash receptacle provided with an orifice; an insert secured in said orifice; a permanent magnet embedded in said insert and having an upper free face; and a snuffing member having a ferromagnetic member at its bottom end abutting against said free face of said permanent magnet so that said snutfing member is held by magnetic attraction to said ash receptacle while being removable therefrom.

2. An ashtray as defined rn clarm l, wherem said ash recep tacle and said snufiing member are made from nonmagnetisable material.

3. An ashtray as defined in claim 2, wherein said ash receptacle and said smiling member are made from ceramic material.

4. An ashtray as defined in claim I, wherein said receptacle is formed with a central upwardly protruding stem in which said orifice is provided and wherein said insert comprises a circular plate having an upper face located in one plane with said upper free face of said magnet embedded therein.

5. An ashtray as defined in claim 4, wherein said snuffing member has a maximum transverse dimension substantially equal to the diameter of said circular plate and is formed with a plurality of bores extending therethrough circumferentially spaced from each other and substantially normal to said upper face of said plate, said ferromagnetic member being embedded in a substantially central portion at the bottom end of said snuffing member. 

